


Casual Kindness

by tinyjet7



Category: Mass Effect: Andromeda
Genre: F/M, Hand Jobs, Spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-29
Updated: 2017-10-29
Packaged: 2019-01-25 05:53:27
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,827
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12524468
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tinyjet7/pseuds/tinyjet7
Summary: Everyone needs a vacation once in a while.





	Casual Kindness

**Author's Note:**

> this started out as "i bet reyes gets all flustered over something small like holding hands" and then spiraled out of control. it may or may not be continued later.

She has to negotiate fiercely, but in the end, Sara Ryder wins a week of shore leave for her and her entire crew.

"I just don't think we can spare you for that long, Ryder," Tann insists, one last time. Sara rolls her eyes.

"I'm not the only Pathfinder, Tann," she calls over her shoulder as she leaves the salarian's office. "There are three more right outside! Try calling _them_ if something goes wrong, for once."

She sighs, rolling the tension out of her shoulders as the door slides shut behind her. She sends a quick message to her crew from her omni-tool: _meet on the Tempest in an hour._

* * *

Sara ends up in the galley after their meeting. Drack is cooking something that smells _amazing_ , a snack for their 14 hour flight to the Govorkam system, and Vetra is waiting to cook something more dextro-friendly.

"An entire week of leave," Vetra sighs happily. Drack snorts.

"If we're lucky," he says. "Twenty creds says Tann calls us back within two days."

Sara chuckles uneasily.

"Probably," Vetra says, and her mandibles twitch with amusement.

"I don't care how long we get," Sara says contentedly. She leans back against the wall and closes her eyes. "I'm just ready for a break."

"I bet," Vetra hums. She leans gently into Ryder's side, a comforting presence. "Tough being the face of the Initiative. But I think Heleus can take care of itself for at least a few days."

It'd been nonstop diplomatic missions in the few months since the battle at Meridian. Every problem was something only Sara could solve, and every outpost needed attention. She was exhausted.

"Don't jinx it," she says, and drifts off to sleep.

* * *

 "Ryder," Drack is shaking her shoulder, more gently than she'd expected from the krogan. Sara bolts upright.

"We're here already? Who let me fall asleep?" she asks, frantic. She scrambles for her omni-tool. "I haven't even messaged Reyes yet! I didn't get any food!"

"Relax," Vetra says. She grins and drops a sealed container onto the table in front of her. "I messaged him a few hours out. He'll be waiting at the dock."

She throws an overnight bag together as the Tempest docks. She's done in record time, meeting the rest of the crew at the air lock.

"Um," she starts, looking at the assembled lot of them. "Let's see. It's still early afternoon on Kadara. I want everyone back and ready to go in four days, 2100 local time. Don't get too drunk, I'm not going chasing after you if you get into trouble."

That's a lie, and they all know it. They laugh. The airlock opens up behind her and the crew files out, talking amongst themselves. Vetra slaps her shoulder as she passes.

"Don't get into too much trouble, Ryder," she says with a wave.

"I'm more worried about you," Sara counters, pack slung over her shoulders. "Who knows what kind of awful mess you'll get into without me watching your six?"

Even so many months after activating both the vaults and Meridian, Kadara Port still smelled faintly of sulfur. But she had at least a day of freedom, more if there wasn't some cluster-wide emergency only she could handle.

"Pathfinder," SAM says over their private channel. "Mr. Vidal is waiting for you."

She looked up. Reyes was watching her from the shadow of a nearby canopy.

"Hey, Pathfinder," he greets when she's within earshot.

"Hey, yourself," she says.

"Get a room," Vetra shouts from further in the docks. Sara flips her off with a grin. She watches her crew disperse into the crowd.

"So," Reyes says.

"So," Sara says. She smiles and tugs him down for a kiss. "I could go for some food. What's good around here?"

* * *

 Reyes guides her gently through the crowds with a hand on the small of her back. The restaurant he brings her to is small but crowded. Even then, when the host spots Reyes, they're seated immediately, and food quickly finds its way to their table without prompting.

Benefits of having lunch with the Charlatan, she supposes.

For once, she feels safe in the Kadaran marketplace; there are Collective eyes everywhere, she's sure, and even if they weren't on her side, she had SAM to keep an eye on their surroundings.

Her lunch is uneventful, and Reyes takes her pack and carries it as they walk through the open market.

They don't have a real destination in mind, until Sara remembers an email she'd received last week.

"There's a new scope that I absolutely _need_ ," she says, and takes Reyes' right hand in her left, entwining their fingers together.

Sara's done a lot of business with this merchant, and the angaran shopkeeper perks up when they walk in.

"Pathfinder!" she exclaims. They touch arms in the angaran greeting.

"How are you, Meelah?" she asks warmly. "So that scope you told me about..."

As Meelah goes over the specs of the scope, Sara notices that Reyes hasn't said anything. She squeezes his hand, and risks a glance when he squeezes back. He's looking away, seemingly interested in the rest of the store, but there's a tint of red on his cheeks and ears that wasn't there earlier. Sara grins slyly.

"Thanks so much for keeping a few in stock for me," she says earnestly, turning back to Meelah. She insists on paying, even though the angaran woman tries to give it to Sara for free, and she waves cheerfully as they head for the armor shop across the way.

As she's browsing the helmet selection, Sara asks innocently, "What's the matter, Reyes?"

"Hmm?" He'd been staring again, looking anywhere but at Sara.

"Are you _embarrassed_?" she questions, grinning. He opens his mouth, but before he can answer, her omni-tool beeps with an incoming call.

"Hey, kid," Drack drawls. "There's been an... issue, over at Kralla's Song. Could use your help in clearing it up."

"It's been _two hours_ since we landed, Drack," Sara says irritably. The krogan only grins. "Fine. I'll be there in ten."

She turns to Reyes, apology ready, but he just shakes his head knowingly. "My poor Pathfinder, your work is never over."

"Honestly, I'm surprised it took this long for something to go horribly wrong," she mutters with a shrug. "I told them I wouldn't come running, but here I go anyway."

She pulls him down and kisses him quickly and soundly on the lips. "I'll make it up to you, promise."

She relishes the look of surprise and mingled desire on his face as she leaves.

* * *

An hour later, she bursts through the door of Reyes' private room at Tartarus with a breathless apology. The door slides shut and locks behind her. She collapses onto the couch next to him, and Reyes immediately hands her a glass. She inhales deeply, eyes shut, and smiles.

"This is why I love you," she sighs. "I just spent an hour cleaning up after Drack and throwing an insane amount of credits for all the tables he broke, but now you're here, with a private room and whiskey and a couch. God, I missed you. You, Cora and Vetra are like, the only actual functioning people I know and trust not to get into too much trouble."

She takes a deep drink, enjoying the flavor after the taste of Kadara's slums. When she puts the glass down, Reyes surges forward to capture her lips. When they break apart, his smile is small and honest.

"I missed you, Sara," he says, and she smiles.

"I missed you, Reyes," she says. "I never got an answer, though."

"Answer?" he asks absently, more focused on mouthing kisses along her jaw and down her neck. She tilts her head back to grant him better access.

"Were you embarrassed? Earlier, in the store."

He freezes.

"You're blushing again!" she crows. She takes advantage of his surprise to get the upper hand, flipping Reyes onto his back and straddling his hips. "Don't think I haven't noticed! What's the matter, can't handle a little PDA?"

"It's not that," he mutters. She runs her fingers under his shirt, across his abs, and cocks an eyebrow at him. "Really, my dear."

"Okay," she drawls. She slides his shirt up over his chest and carefully tugs it over his head. "What is it, then?"

"It's just-- I'm not used to this sort of thing," he says, gesturing vaguely between them. "Flirting, sex, violence, these things I know. But you are very open with your affections. It is... unexpected."

"You're embarrassed because I'm affectionate," she states, deadpan. Reyes' hands find their way to the waistband of her pants even as he avoids her eyes. She manages to shimmy her way out of them with his help. "I guess Jaal's been rubbing off on me."

She groans, immediately regretting her choice of words. Reyes, on the other hand, grins mischievously. "Should I be jealous?"

"Shut up." She yanks off her shirt, and Reyes surges up to kiss just above the swell of her breasts. "Is that gonna be a thing, then? No PDA?"

"I don't mind it," he says, reaching around her to unclip her bra. She tosses it to the floor. "It is something I can grow accustomed to."

"Good." She stretches, enjoying the choked noise Reyes makes. She grinds down and can feel his hardness through his pants. As she makes quick work of his fly, he bows his head to lick and suck and tease at her breasts.

She brushes her hand gently over his cock with a pleased hum. He shudders and moans her name.

The blush is a good look on him, she decides. She takes him firmly in hand and, with his mouth on hers, works him to completion. She holds him through the aftershocks, sucking a mark onto his neck and he shakes and thrusts into her hand.

After a minute of heavy breathing, he chuckles.

"Can I expect this sort of repayment every time you run off on me?"

She laughs. "Only if it means you forgive me for running out in the middle of a date to babysit my crew."

"What did Drack do, anyways?" Reyes asks. He grabs a washcloth from somewhere just out of sight and wipes himself down efficiently before handing it over to her.

Sara rolls her eyes. "Umi was sick of him breaking her tables, and he didn't have the credits to pay for them. Then she insisted I help him clean up."

"How did any of them survive without you?" he says, mostly to himself.

"You didn't even make it out of your pants," she teases as she pulls her clothes back on.

"You didn't get an orgasm," he shoots back. "Do you not want me to return the favor?"

"I'll get my turn later," she says. "But first, I want to go back to the market and buy that targeting VI mod."

"As you wish," he chuckles.


End file.
